A highly effective biological fertilizer (bio-fertilizer) can be produced cheaply in countries that have a source of a suitable type of zeolitic rock (tuff). Such rocks occur worldwide in areas of past or current volcanism. In the event of explosive volcanic activity huge volumes of silicic glass and other debris are projected into the atmosphere. Reaching high altitude the fine material is sep...

It has recently been proposed that microrefugia played an important role in species survival during past climate change events. However, the current distributions of microrefugia remain largely unknown. Wind-hole sites are areas affected by preferential flows of cool air generated in interstitial spaces created by rock fragments or colluvia. Alpine plant species occurring in lowland wind-hole s...

Libby Legacy Minnesota Community Exhibits Nonoccupational Health Impacts Consistent with Asbestos Damage Adverse health effects of asbestos have been documented worldwide for the better part of the last half-century, with a large number of studies focused on occupa tional exposures received during the mining and processing of vermiculite ore. A new study reports on nonoccupational health effect...

Libby Legacy Minnesota Community Exhibits Nonoccupational Health Impacts Consistent with Asbestos Damage Adverse health effects of asbestos have been documented worldwide for the better part of the last half-century, with a large number of studies focused on occupa tional exposures received during the mining and processing of vermiculite ore. A new study reports on nonoccupational health effect...

Ethnomedical questionnaires were distributed in Chicago, Costa Rica, and Colombia to identify the most common over-the-counter (OTC) plant or plant-based products advocated for treating oral pain, ulcerative conditions, and cancer within these locations. Over 100 plants or plant-based herbal preparations and commercial products, purchased from local botanical markets and pharmacies, were advoca...

Fertility is possibly the most important capability contained within living cells or species. Therefore, finding the most efficacious way to enhance or promote fertility is the main goal of all living things. To best manage nature's strong predisposition for fertility, plant-based traditional medicines for birth control have long been incorporated into medical practices throughout the world, in...

2 Introduction How can the productivity of a plant with a high level of automation be increased even further? Surveys have indicated that plant operators in all sectors consider increased availability and shorter downtimes to be the most effective lever toward increasing productivity. Investigations have shown that downtimes are frequently the result of insufficient maintenance – despite the fa...

Dental biomaterials and natural products represent two of the main growing research fields, revealing plant-derived compounds may play a role not only as nutraceuticals in affecting oral health, but also in improving physico-chemical properties of biomaterials used in dentistry. Therefore, our aim was to collect all available data concerning the utilization of plant polysaccharides, proteins an...

The characteristics of minesoils on abandoned mine land (AML) often dictate which plant species will invade and establish from nearby undisturbed areas. This study measured physical and chemical minesoil properties on 15 AML sites in northern West Virginia and matched these properties to vegetation cover. Fifteen sites ranging in age from 13 to 35 yr old were selected from three surface-mined c...